Emmanuel de Rohan-Polduc was elected Grand Master in 1775 and proved to be among the most administratively capable the Order had seen in generations — his tenure produced a new legal code, substantial naval reform, and an unusually active mint. The small copper coinage of his reign was issued in multiple die varieties across several years, with KM#298.4 representing one of the later sub-types distinguished by subtle differences in the cross arrangement on the reverse die.
By 1798, French forces under Napoleon would expel the Knights from Malta entirely, ending over 250 years of the Order's rule on the island. These copper granos, still circulating at the time, became obsolete almost overnight.
Emmanuel de Rohan-Polduc was elected Grand Master in 1775 and proved to be among the most administratively capable the Order had seen in generations — his tenure produced a new legal code, substantial naval reform, and an unusually active mint. The small copper coinage of his reign was issued in multiple die varieties across several years, with KM#298.4 representing one of the later sub-types distinguished by subtle differences in the cross arrangement on the reverse die.
By 1798, French forces under Napoleon would expel the Knights from Malta entirely, ending over 250 years of the Order's rule on the island. These copper granos, still circulating at the time, became obsolete almost overnight.